[ad_1]
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is headed to the Group of 7 summit in Hiroshima, Japan, the Japanese government confirmed on Saturday, backed by a major shift from President Biden, who told US allies he would allow Ukrainian pilots to be trained in American-made F-fighter jets. 16. Mr. Biden said he was also ready for other countries to provide F-16s to Ukraine.
On Saturday morning, in Hiroshima, Jake Sullivan, the national security adviser, confirmed the change.
As G7 leaders reaffirmed their collective support for Ukraine in the face of the Russian invasion, Mr Zelensky on Friday welcomed the “historic decision” by Mr Biden, and said on Twitter that they will discuss “practical implementation” at the summit.
Mr Zelensky is expected to address the leaders of the Group of 7 nations, who have gathered in Hiroshima, Japan, a city once razed by war, as he seeks more military aid for his country from the world’s leaders. the richest democracy in the world. The visit was arranged after he expressed his “strong desire” to participate face-to-face, Japan’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
The Ukrainian president is expected to arrive in Hiroshima on Saturday afternoon, Kyodo News reported, citing government sources. Late on Friday, he left Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, where he attended the Arab League summit, the Saudi state news agency reported.
In Hiroshima, Mr. Zelensky will almost certainly meet one-on-one with Mr. Biden. The leaders of India, Brazil and other nations who do not want to support Ukraine are also present at this meeting, as a result, and the presence of Mr. Zelensky can make it difficult to maintain that attitude.
Leaders gathered in Hiroshima – in addition to President Biden, including heads of government from Japan, Canada, England, France, Germany and Italy; and the European Union’s top officials – will speak at the weekend about all dimensions of Russia’s war in Ukraine. They will discuss the important question of supplying F-16 fighter jets to Kyiv and the possibility of negotiations on a ceasefire or peace agreement.
Mr Biden’s decision on pilot training, which paves the way for the supply of fighter jets to Ukraine, fulfills Zelensky’s persistent demands for advanced fighter jets to counter Russian air supremacy. With modern missiles and powerful radars that can find targets from hundreds of miles away, the F-16 contains highly restricted classification and other systems that the United States does not want duplicated or falling into enemy hands.
mr. Zelensky’s trip to Japan follows a visit to Saudi Arabia on Friday, the latest stop in a flurry of trips outside Ukraine to shore up support ahead of Ukraine’s anticipated counteroffensive. In Saudi Arabia, Mr Zelensky appealed to Arab leaders meeting there not to follow Russia’s influence.
At a summit that began Friday, G7 leaders pledged to punish Moscow and redouble efforts to cut funding for the war. In meetings with leaders, Mr Zelensky will have the opportunity to discuss the war with some of his strongest supporters: the US, Japan, Germany, Britain, France, Canada and Italy. Leaders of India, Brazil and other countries that refuse to support Ukraine will also attend the summit, as observers say.
Mr Zelensky has increasingly shown a willingness to leave the country, traveling to different European capitals this month to secure the promise of more powerful weapons to support a planned counter-offensive against Russia.
mr. Zelensky will make an appeal in the city that serves as a sobering reminder of the destruction of war, in the middle of the conflict that has sometimes heightened the worry of a potential nuclear clash.
In a visit on Friday to the Hiroshima Peace Memorial, the site of the World War II atomic bomb, the G7 leaders “reaffirmed their position that the threat of Russia using nuclear weapons, let alone their use, is unacceptable,” Japan’s foreign ministry said in a statement.
[ad_2]
Source link